In this episode of Divi Nation we sit down with Dave Cahill of River Net Computers in Frenchtown, New Jersey to talk about following your bliss. What do we mean by that? We mean identifying what makes you happy, what makes you laugh, what piques your interest and then following that trail in your work to unlock a way of life that’s true to you.

Dave Cahill, pictured with his brother James Cahill. Dave and Jim are co-owners of River Net Computers in Frenchtown, N.J. Photo by Katja Kruppe. “What’s amazing since we opened up is the support we’ve gotten from Frenchtown. Frenchtown is great at practicing local sustainability, where everybody is each other’s customer and everybody supports each other.” Don’t miss The Elucidator’s upcoming fall feature on Frenchtown, N.J., “Not Just a River...

How to Prep Your iDevice for iOS 7 By Christina Bonnington / Courtesy of Wired.com Apple’s iOS 7, the biggest change to iOS since its debut, launches Wednesday. While you may be itching to get your fingers on the new operating system, you’ll want to take some time to make sure your device is 100 percent ready for this major software update. First, make sure all the media and memories you’ve stored on your iDevice are backed up. Of course, you’ll also need to verify your device is able to upgrade to iOS 7 in the first place. Here’s what you need to do before you tap that download button. Check Compatibility Not every iOS device is capable of being upgraded to iOS 7*. On the iPhone front, only Retina display handsets can support the new OS. That’s the iPhone 4, 4s, and 5, and obviously the iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s starting Friday. As for iPads, anything second gen or higher will be able to support iOS 7. That includes the iPad 2, 3, 4, and iPad mini. The fifth generation iPod touch is also iOS 7 upgradeable. Back It Up Next, you’ll want to back up all your photos and videos, if you don’t already do this regularly. Plug in your iDevice to your computer, then, if you run OS X, use Image Capture or Preview to Import All of your memories (or you can do selectively import only the media you really want to keep). On Windows, use Windows Explorer to view your photos and copy them to your machine. House Cleaning Before you upgrade, why not do a bit of app house cleaning. Delete apps you never use, and update ones that need updating. Do you really still need those 10 flashlight apps and the Army of Darkness soundboard? Probably not. This is your chance for a fresh start with a brand new OS. If you’ve done some major reorganizing, you’ll want to sync and...

Written by Hunterdon County Democrat Editorial Board / Courtesy of NJ.com Editorial: Students in need of computers and calculators; not just notebooks and pencils Back-to-school giving drives are in high gear, and why not? Rising costs on basics such as food, gasoline and home heating are consuming increasingly larger shares of family incomes at the same time that technology is escalating the cost of heading to school well-supplied. The efforts of those collecting and distributing pencil cases, notebooks and glue sticks are laudable, and such materials are accepted gratefully by parents. But supplies such as these are frequently sold at heavy discounts at this time of year to lure shoppers inside a store with higher-ticket items. That’s why it’s nice to see groups such as United Way of Hunterdon County seeking costlier scientific calculators — essential in many middle- and high-school math and/or science rooms. The group also seeks donations of 2GB flash drives, a necessity for anyone who has a home computer but no home Internet access. Some nonprofit groups and schools welcome donations of gently used computers for students. They’re not looking for the unit grandma bought 15 years ago and never used — if it has a bulky monitor that’s a clear sign that it’s ready for the electronics recycling bin. It’s the equivalent of the once good-wool sweater that’s now dotted with moth holes. But plenty of people regularly upgrade to the newest model. If your “old” Mac, laptop or tablet really isn’t, it could mean the world to a student whose teachers expect presentations on Power Point, not poster board. And the donation of a new one? It could open new...

Applies existing support policy to Windows 8: Customers must upgrade within 24 months to continue receiving patches and fixes Written by Gregg Keizer / Courtesy of ComputerWorld Computerworld – Microsoft today said that Windows 8.1, slated for release this fall, will use the same lifecycle support timeline as 2012’s Windows 8, meaning that it will be supported until early 2023. Windows 8 users will also be required to upgrade to 8.1, and presumably in the future to newer versions of the OS, to continue to receive security patches and other bug fixes, just as they have been obligated to keep up with past editions of Windows. “The lifecycle of Windows 8.1 will remain under the same lifecycle policy as Windows 8 with support ending 1/10/2023,” said Erwin Visser, who heads Windows marketing to businesses, in a Tuesday blog. Microsoft’s current support lifecycle for Windows 8 pegs the end of “Mainstream” support on Jan. 9, 2018, and “Extended” support’s end on Jan. 10, 2023. Under mainstream support, Microsoft patches security vulnerabilities and provides non-security bug fixes. Extended support is limited to security-only updates. For the first time, the company also confirmed that it will manage Windows 8 support the same way it has previous editions of the operating system. “Windows 8 customers will have two years to move to Windows 8.1 after the General Availability of the Windows 8.1 update to continue to remain supported under Windows 8 lifecycle,” Visser said. “That’s key,” said Rob Helm, an analyst with Directions on Microsoft, ranking the importance of the clarification to enterprises. With previous editions, Microsoft cut off support for the initial build of Windows, known as RTM for “release to manufacturing,” two years after the release of the first service pack. If it shipped a second service pack, it stopped supporting the first 24 months after the follow-up’s debut. Service packs have historically been free, just as Windows 8.1 will be. But Microsoft has done away with service packs for Windows...